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As easy as that sounds, Democratic Party officials and other opponents, such as the nonpartisan Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, say the Republican-led effort will suppress voter participation, especially among the poor, elderly and ethnic minorities.

Critics call it a modern-day poll tax, referring to fees charged in Southern states and used to keep African Americans, Mexican Americans and others from voting. They say it targets already marginalized citizens.

The Justice Department, which blocked a similar law in South Carolina late last month and has asked Texas for additional information, has intervened in states that have a history of voting rights violations. A decision is expected soon.

The Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law said 3.2 million voters could be affected by new voter ID laws that take effect this year.

Using Brennan data, the SVREP said 600,000 eligible voters in Texas won't be able to produce a state ID card.

The center found that the root of the ID problem is the lack of “underlying documentation,” such as a birth certificate. Some people don't have one, don't know where to get a replacement or can't afford to pay for one.

Opponents point to another budget-related concern: potential DPS office closings.

“In Texas, we expect 40 to 80 DPS offices will be closed,” said SVREP vice president Lydia Camarillo. “Forty are planned to be closed and another 30 to 40 are likely to be closed.”

In rural communities, where poor people don't have access to personal or public transportation, getting to a DPS office could be burdensome, she said.

Via email, DPS spokesman Tom Vinger said, “The Legislature approved additional resources for DPS, which will allow the department to hire an additional 266 field staff and build six large driver's license offices in major metropolitan areas. Over the years, DPS was forced to close some part-time offices because of a variety of issues, including equipment shortages, building safety and (Americans with Disabilities Act) concerns. Some of these offices may reopen.”

“In September 2012, when the six new large offices open,” he said, “the overall capacity of the department to issue driver's licenses and other forms of identification will increase.”

Camarillo said Texas' voter ID law also ignores a redundancy in identification security in the federal Help Americans Vote Act, which called for various forms of accepted identification at the polls, including a photo ID card or copy of a current utility bill.

“We're basically saying 600,000, more or less, will have their rights violated as a result of one reason or another because they can't produce documents. We're talking about American citizens who have the right to vote.”

Nor were others at the two centers, many of whom didn't know about the new law. Several said that if an ID card is required at the polls, they'll be able to pull it out of their wallets.

Many of the men proudly produced valid driver's licenses, as did some of the women. Some said they carry ID cards, but rarely need them. They use ATM cards, which don't require proof of identification, rather than cashing checks.

Seventy-year-old Hortencia Alonzo said an ID card was easy to get, though she hasn't had much use for it, except to vote.

Marian Stanko, executive director of the Republican Party of Bexar County, said fraud is the core of the voter ID law. She scoffed at the argument that voters don't have photo ID cards.

“I'm an election judge, and 88 percent of voters present their IDs without even being asked for it,” she said.

“There are no documented cases of fraud,” said Choco Meza, chairwoman of the Bexar County Democratic Party. “If they had, they would have made it part of the court record,” referring to the Justice Department's case.

“It's a head game,” she said. “We're selecting who will participate. Election officials do not have the right to decide who the voters are. The voters are the ones who have the right to decide who their officials are.”

In the 2008 primary elections, 275,016 of Bexar County's 871,916 registered voters cast ballots, said county elections administrator Jacquelyn Callanen. Today, more than 857,640 voters are registered to vote in 622 precincts countywide.

If the Justice Department clears the new ID law, the county will need to gear up for the changes it will spur.

Callanen said new forms must be produced. “There's also an education learning curve for citizens and election officials,” she said.

But if an eligible voter doesn't have a state ID, they won't be turned away at the polls.

“They can vote provisionally,” she said. “Then we give them a map to find our location. They'll have a remedy period, six days to come to our office to show us their photo ID, so we can count their vote.”